The Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) is a nationwide, not-for-profit group on a mission to help more motorcyclists ride safer and avoid motorcycle accidents. There are a lot of ways the MSF promotes motorcycle safety, including by organizing safety courses and classes across the country that you can join, sometimes for no cost at all. But one of the most surprising ways the MSF wants you to be safe while riding is to “pretend you are invisible.”
Why Thinking You’re Invisible Can Help
When people learn to drive, they are trained to look for other cars, vans, trucks, and SUVs on the road. They are not trained to look for smaller vehicles like motorcycles, though. As time goes by, drivers become more and more accustomed to looking for larger vehicles when merging, changing lanes, and waiting at an intersection, which makes them less and less likely to notice a motorcycle near them.
A driver could look directly at you while you are seated on your motorcycle but not “see” you because they never register your presence in their mind. Effectively, you are invisible to them. The MSF wants you to take the initiative when you are riding and just pretend you are invisible to other drivers and take precautions to make yourself more visible and safer.
There are three things you can do while “invisible” to help avoid a motorcycle accident:
- Be bright: You might be “invisible” to other drivers, but you can try to regain your visibility by being as bright as possible. Keep your headlight on at all times. Check your local laws to see if you are allowed to use your high beam while riding during the day. Also, wear bright clothing and protective gear when riding. There are plenty of bright and stylish helmets in all sorts of designs. Find one that fits your fashion!
- Practice your evasive maneuvers: Motorcycles are much nimbler than an automobile, which gives you the chance to avoid a crash with a driver who doesn’t see you by moving out of the way. Evasive maneuvers can be risky, though, if you don’t know how to execute them properly. Take a training course to learn how to better control your motorcycle in an emergency situation. Remember that the MSF offers training courses, too. Check out https://www.msf-usa.org/ to join a class near you.
- Assume another driver will hit you: It might sound morbid or negative but assuming the worst of other motorists is the underlying point of pretending you are invisible. When another car is approaching, assume it will hit you unless you control and maneuver your motorcycle safely. Pay attention to your surroundings, don’t lane-split, and yield the right-of-way whenever it will be the safest option.
You can learn more about pretending you are invisible by clicking here and checking out an informative PDF from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. If you need legal help after being in a motorcycle accident caused by a driver who didn’t notice you, then call (386) 333-6613 and speak with an attorney from Politis & Matovina, P.A. in Daytona Beach. Many of our staff are avid motorcyclists, so you can be sure that we will take your case to heart and act as if we are representing ourselves.